Autumn Color

This was the sunrise breaking through the fog at 7:00 this morning! It is in the field across the street from our neighborhood. Gorgeous, isn't it? What were we doing out at 7:00 this morning? Well, the youngest Shaver decided to wake up at 5:30 am and wake up ALL the rest of the Shavers. Since we were all awake so early anyway, we took a family fieldtrip to Cracker Barrel for breakfast!



I took these pictures this morning half a block from our house! It is Founder's Park in our neighborhood. Yes, that really is the color of the trees! Maple trees are one of my favorite wonders of God's creation. I have always loved the Fall here: cool, sunny days and hillsides that look like they are on fire! I miss the view of the Rocky Mountains, but I love living in a part of the country that has four distinct seasons. It is so beautiful!

"...the whole earth is full of His glory." Isaiah 6:3

What A Helper!

Usually, he just stands next to the dishwasher and empties the clean silverware on to the floor for me. What a helper!?!?

Big Hair

Tonight I was getting Audra ready to go into the bathtub and took her hair down. When she looked into the mirror, she said, "Look Mommy, I got big hair just like you!" Hmmm. What exactly does that say about my hair? Should I be taking a hint of some kind?

Other Funny "Audra-isms":

For the last three weeks Audra has been calling me "Mamma Bird" and herself "Baby Bird." She got this from the book, Are You My Mother? It's pretty cute. The first thing she does most morning when I go to get her out of bed is flap her wings and say, "Cheap! Cheap! Mamma Bird!" She calls me that throughout the day!

She also does this funny thing that she learned from Awana Cubbies. In order to help the kids memorize their scripture verses they'll have the kids say it faster, slower, softly, etc. She has started doing this thing where she'll have us repeat the last thing we said over and over again in a different way (particularly when we say, "I love you"). The conversation goes something like this:
Daddy: Audra, have I told you lately that I love you?
Audra: Now say it faster!
Daddy: Ilvyu!!!
Audra: Nooow saaaay iiiiit sloooowleeeee.
Daddy: IIIII Looooooove yooooooou.
Audra: (Whispering) now say it softly
Daddy: i love you

This is repeated multiple times a day.

Audra's favorite phrase at the moment is "Oh, dear!" She does it so often that I probably wouldn't think anything of it, except that other people think it is so hysterical. It is always said with full gusto and often with her hands on her cheeks or her hips. It could be a reaction to accidentally dropping something, making a mistake, something interesting that someone else says...or just because!

Game Day

Saturday. These boys are so talented: they can watch football AND play Chutes & Ladders at the same time!

Hiking at Lake Fayetteville

The kids and I went hiking today with Kim & Jaycee Petrone and Jill, Kate, & Luke Bell. It was a crisp, sunny Autumn morning. We loved being outdoors with such great company! The only casualty was when Audra tripped and scraped up her nose and mouth (thus the pictures of her crying and my attempt at holding both her and Justus)! Thank you, Jill, for taking these pictures.

Costumes

Is this the most darling little cow you've ever seen, or what?!?

Cinderella

Look out! Here comes the Spiderman!

We love to play dress up...and we play it all the time! Actually, Titus and Audra have been dressing up in these costumes about every other day for the past month. One day right after we got Spiderman, we needed to make a quick trip to Target when the kids had these on. Titus really wanted to wear his and I didn't want to go through the hassle of changing them, so they wore their costumes.

When we got to Target, Scott and Titus (in full costume) were walking up in front of us. We were following behind with Audra and Justus in the shopping cart. It was hilarious to watch people look at Titus as he casually walked through the store. Inevitably, they would stare and then as soon as they passed they'd look at each other and laugh hysterically. Then I would laugh at them laughing! Titus kept looking at Scott as if to say, "What?" Scott would just reply, "Hey man, it's not everyday they get to see Spiderman!"

Carving Pumpkins

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house." Matthew 5:14-16

This verse has been my theme for our family this year for Halloween. It is actually referring to Jesus, but it is my hope that our home has been a light in the darkness of Halloween this year.

Titus has been asking to carve a jack-o-lantern since we got those pumpkin patch books from the library. We've never made one before because I don't like the scary faces and usually I just put out lots of pumpkins from the pumpkin patch for Fall. Titus really wanted a jack-o-lantern with a scary face to "chase the bandits away". Thankfully, I found a book (The Pumpkin Patch Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs) that tells a sweet story about a farmer's pumpkin becoming a jack-o-lantern. She compares it to how God's transforming love can fill each of our hearts with joy and light. In the end when people saw the smiling pumpkin, it caused them to smile back.

Titus seemed satisfied with that and agreed to make a jack-o-lantern with a happy face. After Halloween, Titus asked me, "Mommy, did the kids smile when they saw our pumpkin?" I bet they did.

Colorado

(The view of Boulder and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains from Broomfield, CO. This was taken about 5 blocks from the apartment where we lived.)

The day after we got the news about Tennyson, we loaded up the car and drove to Colorado. We wanted to be there to celebrate his life and love on our friends, Brian & Marchelle, who are experiencing such a great loss. I'm not quite ready to attempt to write about Tennyson, but our friend, Brian Scaglia (his best friend since junior high) has created a website in honor of his life: www.tennysonmccarty.com. Every word I've tried to come up with to describe Tennyson McCarty seems trite. If you read his obituary on the website or glance at some of the comments, you will discover what a rare person Tennyson was and what an impact his life had an so many people.

I spent the week very heavy-hearted and contemplative. 24 hours after the call about Tennyson, I received another phone call from a Colorado friend who wanted me to know before I arrived that her husband has filed for a divorce. She is one of the last people I would have expected to get this call from. She was just as shocked. She's pregnant with their fourth baby. How someone could walk away from the goodness of God, his wife, and four children without considering the consequences is something my brain has been trying to reconcile all week. It is very sobering to ponder what any of us is capable of if we allow our heart to harden. (Each of us has our own areas of selfishness, unforgiveness, or bitterness to surrender.) Another friend in Colorado, Cathy Lee, recommended the book, When Godly People Do Ungodly Things by Beth Moore. I think I'm going to check it out.

On top of all that, all three of my kids got the stomach flu and each threw up for about 24 hours! After that, we decided to pack up and come home early! (This is beginning to sound worse than a country song!) Poor kiddos! We didn't get to spend as much time or see as many people as we would have liked since the kids got sick (and due to the unplanned nature of our trip), but I'm so thankful for the time that we were able to spend with friends. I'm also so grateful to Jason and Anita Foster for inviting us to stay with them for the week. They are so generous and hospitable. We also had a great time staying up late playing games after the kids went to bed! Titus was so happy to play with their son, Aaron, and on the drive home said, "I love my best friend, Aaron." They've known each other since they were 2 1/2 and have always played incredibly well together. Thank you, Fosters! (You still owe me a picture!)

On to the more fun side of the trip:

Starbucks with Tim & Kristen Zandee. We caused such a scene in Starbucks! Tim and Scott are a riot when they are together!

Kimberly & Griffin Hill. It was SO good to see you!

Fondue with Caleb and Anne Ford! Titus introduced himself to Caleb and Anne as "Titus, but I'm pretending to be Spiderman" and thus began an entertaining evening of fondue with "Spiderman" and "Princess". The waitress even wrote their aliases on their cups! Thank you guys for driving up to have dinner with our crew!

Pearl Street Mall--Boulder, Colorado

Lunch at the Cheesecake Factory with Jyoti, Natasha, and Ava Bennell. Yummmmm.

After lunch, we took the kids outside to play on Pearl Street Mall. It was an incredibly beautiful Fall day. Notice the mountains in the background? Pearl Street always brings back so many memories for me from my college years!


Justus loved playing with Jyoti's beard!

OK, I could not resist the temptation to take this picture! This is so classic Pearl Street. Where else on Earth would you see a pajama-wearing hippie playing a harp and singing opera?!?!

Tennyson McCarty

We got news from Colorado this morning that a friend of ours, a HERO of the faith, has died unexpectedly. Scott wrote this letter and asked me to post it on my blog:

I wonder if you will ever know
The way you touched things to make them grow
Your heart was pure and your life true
Now we are standing to honor you
With the angels around you and your Savior's embrace
I close my eyes to see your face
You fought a great fight and the Lord has you now
No more tears, pain, or fear; you kept your hands to the plow
The fruit of your life here it remains
It will not wither, it will not change
Today we all mourn our friend we will miss
But someday we will see you and embrace with a hug & kiss
I thank God for your life and your heavenly bliss
But today you should know you are a friend I will miss.

I love you, Tennyson.